Light weight flotation mattress

ABSTRACT

A light weight flotation mattress formed of upper and lower flexible plastic sheets sealed along their edges to form a flat water tight bag of generally quadrilateral outline. The bag has a stoppered filling opening, and the upper and lower sheets are connected together at a plurality of points along two side marginal portions of the bag by elongate flexible plastic tie strips which are strategically located and preferably all parallel to the longer sides of the mattress. The bag is also made shorter than a conventional mattress, by eliminating the pillow area. And, at both said marginal bag portions the tie strips are narrower than other strips which extend along central portions of the bag, whereby the spacing between the sheets when the bag is filled is non-uniform and substantially less along the sides. Thus, less water is contained in the side marginal portions (where the patient&#39;&#39;s weight is less than at the central portions), and this makes for a total minimum amount of water needed, and for a much lighter weight mattress when filled. The tie strips maintain areas of uniformity in the mattress height, preventing the sheets from greatly bulging out, and enabling the patient to be completely supported by the water and out of contact with any under supports, even when in a sitting posture. The smaller quantity of water also greatly reduces the filling and emptying time. The bag preferably is provided with a thin, resilient and flexible plastic extension sheet attached to the head end, whereby it can be readily anchored at the head portion of a bed. The improved water mattress is adapted to be placed on and used over the conventional mattress of a bed.

United States Patent [191 Viesturs [451 Nov. 19, 1974 15 1 LIGHT WEIGHTFLOTATION MATTRESS [76] Inventor: Eric A. Viesturs, 147D Hill Ct.,

Heritage Village, Southbury, Conn. 06488 22' Filed: Jan. 18, 1973' 211Appl. No.: 324,862

[52] US. Cl 5/348 WB, 5/349 [51] Int. Cl. A47c 27/08 [58] Field ofSearch 5/348, 348 WB, 349, 350,

Primary Examiner-Paul R. Gilliam Assistant Examiner-Andrew M. CalvertAttorney, Agent, or Firm-H. Gibner Lehmann; K. Gibner Lehmann [57]ABSTRACT A light weight flotation mattress formed of upper and lowerflexible plastic sheets sealed along their edges to form a flat watertight bag of generally quadrilateral outline. The bag has a stopperedfilling opening, and

the upper and lower sheets are connected together at a plurality ofpoints along two side marginal portions of the bag by elongate flexibleplastic tie strips which are strategically located and preferably allparallel to the longer sides of the mattress. The bag is also madeshorter than a conventional mattress, by eliminating the pillow area.And, at both said marginal bag portions the tie strips are narrower thanother strips which extend along central portions of the bag, whereby thespacing between the sheets when the bag is filled is non-uniform andsubstantially less along the sides. Thus, less water is contained in theside marginal portions (where the patients weight is less than at thecentral portions), and this makes for a total minimum amount of waterneeded, and for a much lighter weight mattress when filled. The tiestrips maintain areas of uniformity in the mattress height, preventingthe sheets from greatly bulging out, and enabling the patient to becompletely supported by the water and out of contact with any undersupports,

even when in a sitting posture. The smaller quantity of water alsogreatly reduces the filling and emptying time. The bag preferably isprovided with a thin, resilient and flexible plastic extension sheetattached to the head end, whereby it can be readily anchored at the headportion of a bed. The improved water mattress is adapted to be placed onand used over the conventional mattress of a bed.

12 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures PATENTEL m1 1 I 3.848.282

SHEET EN 2 OOOOOHQO nil (g o 9 who 0 o up' 'o o o o ollho o o o o c ue oo o ITHIOPQWAA 1 LIGHT WEIGHT FLOTATION MATTRESS CROSS REFERENCES TORELATED APPLICATIONS Co-pending application in the name of Eric A.Viesturs, Ser. No. 136,043 filed Apr. 21, 1971 and entitled FluidMattress."

BACKGROUND This invention relates generally to water mattresses, andmore particularly to a water flotation mattress of the type intended forhospitals and the like, to be placed over the conventional mattress of abed for the purpose of providing added comfort to a bed patient and toprevent decubitus ulcers or bed sores. In the past various types ofwater mattresses, flotation devices and systems have been proposed andproduced. For domestic use there are water mattresses intended to befilled with large volumes of water and in many instances intended toreplace the conventional mattress in a bedstead. These water mattressesin most cases required special supporting frames, and due to their largesize and weight imposed an additional burden on the room structurewhereby care had to be exercised to avoid sagging floors and overloadedflooring supports. Such mattresses were wholly unsuitable for hospitaluse due to their large size and weight, and due to the lack of controlover a patients movements. Mattresses of this kind moreover wereunsuitable for use with hospital type beds, which universally employadjustable spring or support structures that enable patients to beplaced in partially reclining or partially sitting positions, etc.

A serious drawback to confinement in bed, even in hospitals, is the factthat bed sores or decubitus ulcers often develop, these becomingespecially painful and detrimental to the comfort of the patient. Intreating such bed sores, complicated water flotation systems have beendeveloped. These systems enabled bed sores to be successfully treatedand healed but the procedures involved expensive equipment which was notreadily available to the average patient. While efforts have been madeto develop simpler flotation systems in the form of water mattresses,these have not been especially successful for the reason that they wereespecially heavy and cumbersome, involved considerable time in fillingand emptying, and were not effective where patients desired to be placedin semi-reclining or semi-sitting positions. Thus,- universal acceptanceand use of water filled flotation mattresses has not occurred due to thedrawbacks mentioned.

SUMMARY The above disadvantages of prior water flotation systems andparticularly water flotation mattresses are ob-.

viated by the present invention, which has for its main object theprovision of a novel and improved flotation mattress which achieves themaximum flotation effect with a minimum amount of water, being thusespecially light in weight as compared with other mattresses, andretaining its effective flotation or distributed supporting action eventhough the patient lies on one side or the other, or is placed in asemi-reclining or sitting position. A related object of the invention isto provide an improved water flotation mattress as above set forth,which is especially sturdy and failure-resistant in its with a pluralityof elongate resilient and flexible plastic tie strips which jointogether the upper and lower sheets in spaced apart relation, the tiestrips being gnerally parallel to each other and parallel to theopposite side or marginal portions of the mattress. Those tie stripswhich extend closely adjacent the side edges of the bag are narrowerthan tie strips which are disposed in central portions of the bag. Thus,the marginal side portions of the filled bag have a lesser thickness,and carry less water than the central portions whereby there results anadvantageous decrease in the overall weight of the mattress. All of thetie strips are preferably disposed in parallel rows, and the strips ofthe centrally disposed rows are preferably shorter than the strips ofthe rows adjoining the side edges of the bag or mattress. With the aboveconstruction there is not only achieved a lesser overall weight of themattress, but in addition a reliable flotation action is maintained atall times whereby the patients body is fully supported over large areaseven when the patient is sitting or semi-reclining.

A feature of the invention resides in the provision of an improved waterflotation mattress which can be readily controlled as to itstemperature, and wherein an easy and convenient check can be had of thewater and mattress temperature at any time.

Another feature of the invention resides in the ease of quickly fillingand emptying the mattress, and in the provision of an improved stopperedfilling opening embodying a pull tab whereby the operation of thestopper is facilitated.

In the accompanying drawings illustrating one embodiment of theinvention:

FIG. 1 is a top plan view of a lightweight water flotation mattress asprovided by the invention.

FIG. 2 is a transverse section taken on the line 22 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a top plan view of one of the shorter tie strips such as areemployed in center portions of the mattress.

FIG. 4 is a top plan view of one of the longer and narrower tie stripsas employed inside marginal portions of the mattress, and

FIG. 5 isa fragmentary section taken on the line 5-5 of FIG. 1.

As shown, the flotation mattress of the invention comprises a pair ofthin, resilient and flexible synthetic plastic upper and lower sheetsl0, 12 respectively, such sheets having a generally quadrilateralconfiguration and being arranged in superposed relation with theirperipheral portions, 14, 16, 18 and 20 respectively joined so as to forma flat, closed and watertight bag. The bag thus formed is dimensioned tohave a length which is less than a conventional mattress byapproximately the pillow area, thereby appreciably reducing the amountof water which it holds. The sheets l0, l2

may be joined for this purpose by an electronic heat sealing or weldingprocedure. I have found that they can be advantageously constituted ofpolyvinyl chloride having a thickness of approximately 0.022 inches.Preferably the polyvinyl chloride material is formulated with anantiseptic additive such as an agent which has antibacterial properties.

Referring to FIG. 1 the upper sheet is provided with a stoppered fillingopening 22 by which the bag can be filled with water and emptied, usinga conventional garden hose or equivalent means.

By the present invention there is provided a plurality of elongate,resilient and flexible plastic tie strips in said bag and locatedintermediate the longitudinal side edges of the bag, said strips joiningtogether the upper and lower sheets 10, 12 in spaced apart relation.These tie strips, in the illustrated embodiment of the invention, are oftwo types a short relatively wide tie strip 26 as illustrated in FIG. 3and a relatively longer, relatively narrow tie strip 28 as illustratedin FIG. 4.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, all of the tie strips are arranged in spacedrelation to each other and are disposed in parallel rows, said rowsextending between the head and foot portions 18, of the bag as shown.Two rows of the long tie strips 28 extend closely adjacent each of theelongate or side marginal or longitudinal portions of the mattress, andthe central portions of the mattress are provided with rows of theshorter, wider tie strips 26. As seen in FIG. 1, eight of the long,narrower tie strips can be employed in the mattress, and twelve of theshorter and wider tie strips also employed, to provide an effectivecontrol of the water which the bag contains and to prevent undesiredexcessive bulging. The strips 26, 28 when properly utilized establish adesirable controlled spacing between the upper and lower sheets 10, 12.

According to the invention, with the arrangement illustrated the widertie strips 26 provide for a greater thickness at central portions of themattress because these portions can hold a greater amount of water. Thenarrower tie strips 28 on the other hand provide a lesser spacingbetween the upper and lower sheets l0, 12 at the marginal or sideportions of the mattress whereby these portions will contain a lesseramount of water.

The width, shape and location of tie strips 26, 28 are important forproper functioning of my lightweight water flotation mattress. Inworking with flotation mattresses I have discovered that for bestresults a number of tie strips of lower height and longer length shouldbe placed along both sides of the mattress. Somewhat wider strips, whichare much shorter and larger in number should be positioned in paralleldirections in the central area approximately where the patient will beresting. l have also found that best results ensued by trapping thewater in the side or so-called no-load areas will not touch the bottomsheet or the regular under mattress. Some tie strips in the load areaare necessary because, when the patient changes his position certainareas will suddenly be released of pressure. Water tends to rush intothese released areas, and other portions of the patients body could thensuddenly sink down and hit bottom. The purpose of the tie strips is thusto control the water displacement and distribution. This is especiallyimportant when the head end of the bed is raised and part of themattress behind the patients back is partially upright. The tie stripsystem as described does not permit all of the water to rush down intothe horizontal section, but instead much is still held in the uprightportions, providing sufiicient rest and cushioning for the patientsback.

I have found that the side or marginal portions of the for the'reasonthat they experience a lesser weight. Ac-

cordingly, by making the mattress so that it contains less water in itssides there is achieveda substantial reduction in the overall weight,which is of considerable advantage in enabling the mattress to beconveniently handled.

For example, a mattress which has a size of 36 inches wide by 64 incheslong will contain a total weight of water of from to pounds where thespacingof sheets between the marginal portions is approximately 2 inchesand the spacing of sheets at the central portions is approximately 4inches. This filled weight of the mattress is well within the maximumload limits of the modern electric hospital bed. Moreover, such weightis not prohibitive in enabling nurses or attendants to handle a filledmattress, as when making up a bed, attending to the patient, etc.

The tie strips26, 28 are electronically heat welded or sealed to theupper and lower sheets l0, 12, the weld lines for the long strips beingindicated at 32 and the weld lines for the short strips being indicatedat 34. The distance between the outer tie strips 28 can advantageouslybe approximately 3 inches, and the distance between the inner tie strips26 can be approximately 4 to 6 inches. In each instance the weldinglines terminate in enlarged end areas indicated by' the numerals 38, 40respectively for the long and short strips, such enlarged areas beingtermed teardrop areas. A greater strength is thus had for the fused orwelded portions of the bag.

Additionally, in accordance with the invention, at the ends of theelongate tie strips 26, 28 wide notches 42, 44 are provided wherebystresses on the enlarged end welds or teardrop areas are minimized. Thenotches 42, 44 each define two rounded projecting ears at the corners ofthe tie strips, each of the ears being joined by a smooth and unbrokenedge (the edges at the base of the corresponding notches 42, 44). Thisminimizes high local tearing stresses which would normally occur at theends of such tie strips. The likelihood of the strips becoming tornunder conditions of excessive weight applied to the bag is thus greatlyminimized. Instead, the stresses are partially distributed along thoseheat sealed or fused areas which are removed from the teardrop ends.With such construction there is had a reliable securement of the tiestrips to the upper and lower sheets, with the least likelihood offailure of the bag and leakage of water. Due to the configuration andlesser thickness of the tie strips, these will fail before the bag tearsif excessive forces beyond those occurring in normal use areencountered. Thus no water leakage is likely to occur under anycircumstance of excessive weight.

The areas of the strips between or intermediate the ends thereof canhandle extreme stress caused by water pressure, weight of the patient,etc., for the reason that the stress is distributed over a long area orlength.

l have found that, by the provision of the shorter tie strips in thecentral portions of the mattress or bag there is had a greaterflexibility and also a better distribution of the contained water, tothe end that no collapse of the mattress will occur normally if thehospital bed is operated to place the patient in a semi-reclining orpartially sitting position. The water is always confined mostly in thecentral portions, and becomes distributed in a manner controlled by thetie strips, so that no excessive bulging of the bag can occur at any onepoint. As a consequence, a relatively uniform distribution of the wateris had for all conditions of use, preserving and maintaining theflotation action which is so desirable. When a bag as above constructedis filledto a thickness of 3 to 4 inches and is supporting a patient,the pliable top sheet will adjust itself to the contours of the body,and the special tie strip arrangement will prevent the patients bodyfrom receiving support from the bottom mattress sheet. Without the tiestrips, the bag would bulge around the patient to a thickness of 6 or 7inches.

As already stated above, the flotation mattress is intended to be placedover the conventional mattress of a bed, such conventional mattressbeing indicated by the numeral 48 in FIG. 2.

in accordance with the invention, the upper mattress sheet is providedwith a flat, transparent pocket 50 adapted to contain a rigidtransparent plastic flat case 52 which carries a thermometer 54. Thethermometer can thus be read while carried in the case 52 and pocket 50,thereby indicating the temperature of the plastic upper sheet and givinga relatively accurate indication of the water temperature of themattress.

For the purpose of facilitating the removal and application of thestopper to the opening 22 I provide a pair of pull tabs 56 constitutedof flexible plastic material, with finger openings 58, said tabs beingsecured to the upper sheet 10 at the opening 22 and enabling theoperator to hold the upper sheet securely while applying or removing thestopper. The fitting for the stopper 60 will receive the standardcoupling connection of an ordinary garden hose. By virtue of this, themattress can be easily and quickly filled and emptied while on location,with the least effort, waste of time and water spillage.

It will now be seen from the foregoing that l have provided a novel andimproved water flotation mattress of extremely simple construction,which is rugged and durable and not likely to suffer failure, saidmattress being especially arranged to minimize the weight of water whichit contains whereby it falls within the realm of practical hospitalaccessories. The mattress is espe' cially useful in preventing and/ortreating decubitus ulcers or bed sores suffered by patients, andprovides a comfortable, water flotation type support which eliminateshigh pressure areas and instead provides minimum body supportingpressures at a level where they are not dangerous or irritating.

5 lie the pillows and to be anchored to the head portion of the hospitalbed whereby the mattress will be securely positioned thereon.

It can now be understood that the present invention provides a new,inexpensive, and improved light weight 10 water flotation mattress whichcan be readily used on top of a regular mattress, and which need befilled with water to a weight of only to pounds, depending on the weightof the patient. It can be filled and made ready for use in less than 10minutes, has provision for 15 monitoring water temperature, can beeasily anchored to the head of the bed so that the mattress stays putand does not slide down to the foot end even when the head of the bed(with the patient) is raised or lowered for his comfort. Although thehead of the bed is placed in a raised position the mattress will stillcontain enough water in the upright section to provide adequate supportfor the patients back. The mattress can be madeof thermoplastic materialsuch as polyvinyl chloride, making it possible to include in itsformulation anti- 25 bacteriastats such as are necessary to preventbuildup of algae inside and to maintain sanitary surfaces on theoutside.

The lightweight water flotation mattress according to my invention whennot in use weighs only approxi- 30 mately 4 pounds and can be easilyfolded and stored in a small box on a shelf. The filling with water isaccomplished by a simple hose system which permits a veryv fast waterflow. By use of a combination of hose lengths, using sections of regulargarden hose, the flota- 35 tion mattress can be filled directly whenpositioned on the patients bed thus making it unnecessary to fill it ina special maintenance room or bathroom, and then move the filledmattress to the patients room or bedroom.

Variations and modifications are possible without departing from thespirit of the invention.

1 claim:

1; A light-weight flotation mattress, comprising, in

combination:

a. a pair of thin, resilient and flexible synthetic plastic upper andlower sheets of substantially rectangular configuration, located insuperposed relation and having their peripheral portions respectivelyjoined to form a flat, closed and watertight bag of rectangular outlinewith oppositely disposed longitudinal side edges,

b. said bag having a stoppered filling opening, and

c. a plurality of elongate, resilient and flexible plastic tie strips insaid bag and located intermediate the longitudinal side edges of thebag, said strips joining together the upper and lower sheets inspacedapart relation,

(1. said tie strips being broadside to and spaced from one another, anddisposed in substantially parallel rows,

e. said rows extending longitudinally of the bag in spaced-apartrelation and parallel to the opposite longitudinal side edges of thebag,

f. those tie strips of the rows which are located adjacent thelongitudinal edges of the bag being narrower than strips disposed nearerthe center of the bag such that the sheets are held in closer spacedrelation near the longitudinal side edges of the bag than at its center.

2. A mattress as in claim 1, wherein:

a two rows of said tie strips extend closely adjacent said on pair ofopposite edges of the bag,

b. other rows of tie strips being interposed between said two rows,

0. the tie strips of said other rows being of different width from thetie strips of said two rows.

3. A mattress as in claim 2, wherein:

a. the tie strips of said two rows are longer than the tie strips ofsaid other rows.

4. A mattress as in claim 2, wherein:

the tie strips are of lesser thickness than the upper and lower sheets.

5. A mattress as in claim 1, wherein:

a. the upper and lower sheets and the tie strips are formed of plasticmaterial of the type incorporating a bacteria-inhibiting agent.

6. A mattress as in claim 1, and further including:

a. a lifting tab attached to the bag at said filling opening, tofacilitate the stoppering thereof.

7. A mattress as in claim 1, and further including:

a. means on one of said sheets, providing a transparent flat pocket, and

b. a thermometer carried in said pocket.

8. A mattress as in claim 7, and further including:

a. a rigid, flat transparent case disposed in said pocket, in which thethermometer is disposed.

9. A mattress as in claim 1, and further including:

a. a thin, resilient and flexible plastic extension sheet attached toone edge of said bag, for anchoring said edge to a portion of a bed.

10. A light-weight water flotation mattress comprising, in combination:

a. a pair of thin, resilient and flexible synthetic plastic upper andlower sheets of substantially rectangular configuration, located insuperposed relation and having their peripheral portions respectivelyjoined to form a flat, closed and watertight bag of rectanat theircomers, respectively secured to the sheets to minimize high localtearing stresses which would normally occur at such ends, thus lesseningthe likelihood of the ends being torn under conditions of excessiveweight applied to the bag.

11. A mattress as in claim 10, wherein:

a. each end of the strip has a smooth and unbroken edge joining its twoears.

12. An inflatable cushion adapted to carry a fluid and arranged forsupporting living objects, comprising in combination:

a. a pair of thin individual, resilient and flexible, synthetic, plasticsuperposed sheets bonded to each other to form a closed bag, and

b. an elongate, resilient and flexible, thin plastic tie strip locatedin said bag intermediate the edges thereof,

c. opposite longitudinal edge portions of the tie strip being bondedrespectively to the said individual sheets,

d. each of the ends of the tie strip having projecting ears at itscorners joined together by a smooth unbroken edge, said ears beingbonded to the sheets to minimize the likelihood of tearing of thestripends.

1. A light-weight flotation mattress, comprising, in combination: a. apair of thin, resilient and flexible synthetic plastic upper and lowersheets of substantially rectangular configuration, located in superposedrelation and having their peripheral portions respectively joined toform a flat, closed and watertight bag of rectangular outline withoppositely disposed longitudinal side edges, b. said bag having astoppered filling opening, and c. a plurality of elongate, resilient andflexible plastic tie strips in said bag and located intermediate thelongitudinal side edges of the bag, said strips joining together theupper and lower sheets in spaced-apart relation, d. said tie stripsbeing broadside to and spaced from one another, and disposed insubstantially parallel rows, e. said rows extending longitudinally ofthe bag in spaced-apart relation and parallel to the oppositelongitudinal side edges of the bag, f. those tie strips of the rowswhich are located adjacent the longitudinal edges of the bag beingnarrower than strips disposed nearer the center of the bag such that thesheets are held in closer spaced relation near the longitudinal sideedges of the bag than at its center.
 2. A mattress as in claim 1,wherein: a. two rows of said tie strips extend closely adjacent said onpair of opposite edges of the bag, b. other rows of tie strips beinginterposed between said two rows, c. the tie strips of said other rowsbeing of different width from the tie strips of said two rows.
 3. Amattress as in claim 2, wherein: a. the tie strips of said two rows arelonger than the tie strips of said other rows.
 4. A mattress as in claim2, wherein: the tie strips are of lesser thickness than the upper andlower sheets.
 5. A mattress as in claim 1, wherein: a. the upper andlower sheets and the tie strips are formed of plastic material of thetype incorporating a bacteria-inhibiting agent.
 6. A mattress as inclaim 1, and further including: a. a lifting tab attached to the bag atsaid filling opening, to facilitate the stoppering thereof.
 7. Amattress as in claim 1, and further including: a. means on one of saidsheets, providing a transparent flat pocket, and b. a thermometercarried in said pocket.
 8. A mattress as in claim 7, and furtherincluding: a. a rigid, flat transparent case dispoSed in said pocket, inwhich the thermometer is disposed.
 9. A mattress as in claim 1, andfurther including: a. a thin, resilient and flexible plastic extensionsheet attached to one edge of said bag, for anchoring said edge to aportion of a bed.
 10. A light-weight water flotation mattresscomprising, in combination: a. a pair of thin, resilient and flexiblesynthetic plastic upper and lower sheets of substantially rectangularconfiguration, located in superposed relation and having theirperipheral portions respectively joined to form a flat, closed andwatertight bag of rectangular outline with oppositely disposedlongitudinal side edges, b. said bag having a stoppered filling opening,and c. a plurality of elongate, resilient and flexible plastic tiestrips in said bag and located intermediate the longitudinal side edgesof the bag, said strips joining together the upper and lower sheets inspaced-apart relation, d. said tie strips being broadside to and spacedfrom one another and disposed in substantially parallel rows, e. saidtie strips being elongate and having opposite ends, f. said ends eachhaving two rounded projecting ears at their corners, respectivelysecured to the sheets to minimize high local tearing stresses whichwould normally occur at such ends, thus lessening the likelihood of theends being torn under conditions of excessive weight applied to the bag.11. A mattress as in claim 10, wherein: a. each end of the strip has asmooth and unbroken edge joining its two ears.
 12. An inflatable cushionadapted to carry a fluid and arranged for supporting living objects,comprising in combination: a. a pair of thin individual, resilient andflexible, synthetic, plastic superposed sheets bonded to each other toform a closed bag, and b. an elongate, resilient and flexible, thinplastic tie strip located in said bag intermediate the edges thereof, c.opposite longitudinal edge portions of the tie strip being bondedrespectively to the said individual sheets, d. each of the ends of thetie strip having projecting ears at its corners joined together by asmooth unbroken edge, said ears being bonded to the sheets to minimizethe likelihood of tearing of the strip ends.